Chapter 5
1124 Words
A week went by quickly and soon it was the day of the mating ceremony. The elders insisted i threw a ceremony under the full moon to formally accept my mates in front of the both packs.
I stood at the center of the circle in a silver gown, my hair braided back with moon-flowers. The twins, Kael and Elian, stood on either side of me, both in formal black.
Elder Garrick’s voice boomed across the field. “Tonight, under the light of the Goddess, we witness the bonding of Luna Amara of CrescentFang with the twin Alphas of SilverClaw”
then someone yelled from the back,
“Stop the ceremony!”
Heads turned.
A figure pushed through the crowd in a blood-red dress, her blonde hair gleaming under the moonlight.
Serena.
My stomach dropped.
“Oh, for the love of…” Elian muttered beside me.
Serena stormed into the clearing like she owned the place, clutching a small pouch dramatically against her stomach.
“I can’t let this witch be bind to my mates!” she cried. “Because one of them…” she pointed to the twins “…impregnated me!”
The crowd exploded.
“What?”
“She’s lying, right?”
“Is that true?”
“SilverClaw doesn’t know shame!”
I blinked once. Twice. Then froze. The plan was going wrong.
Serena puffed up like a peacock.
“The Moon Goddess blessed me!” she shouted. “And one of you” she pointed at the twins. “ is the father!”
Kael’s jaw clenched. “Serena, you need to leave.”
She ignored him completely, spinning to face the elders. “Your Luna may claim to be their fated mate, but she’s not the only one they’ve been with! One of them made me pregnant, and I demand recognition! One of them must be bind to me too! It’s not fair for her to have them both!”
A hush fell over the crowd so heavy it felt like the moon itself stopped breathing.
Elder Garrick’s mouth opened, then closed, like a confused fish.
Elder Mira pinched the bridge of her nose.
My wolf growled, Already sharpening claws.
Elder Mira finally stepped in. “Serena, child… if you’re going to claim a pregnancy, proof is required.”
Serena held up her pouch dramatically. “I HAVE proof!”
Elder Garrick frowned. “And what is that?”
“A pregnancy test!” she said proudly.
A few pack members choked on laughter.
Serena lifted her chin. “Laugh all you want. I am with child. A pup created by one of the SilverClaw Alphas!”
Elder Garrick barked, “Enough! Leave this ceremony at once!”
But Serena’s eyes snapped to me wild, furious, humiliated.
“This isn’t over, Amara! You think you’re winning, but your bond is weak! Your packs HATE each other! You’re forcing a mating that will break us all!”
The words hit harder than I wanted to admit.
The crowd had gone eerily quiet.
Someone from CrescentFang muttered, “Maybe she’s right… Maybe this union isn’t blessed.”
Someone from SilverClaw snapped back, “Your Luna’s the problem, not our Alphas!”
The packs kept arguing, the elders trying to calm everyone down.
But I didn’t care about them right then.
My eyes were locked on Serena.
And before I could stop myself, the words came out.
“So tell us, Serena…” I stepped forward, voice slicing clean through the noise. “Which one of them is the father?”
Serena blinked. “I…I told you, one of them.”
“No.” I folded my arms, head tilting. “Which. One.”
Kael stiffened beside me.
Elian’s jaw flexed.
Serena swallowed.
“Well…” she started, glancing between them, looking confused.
My stomach twisted.
She glanced at Kael first.
Then Elian.
Then back again.
And in that split second, the truth lit up the whole damn field.
A murmur rippled through the crowd.
“She doesn’t know…”
“Wait, did she sleep with BOTH?”
“That’s not how pregnancies work…”
“This is embarrassing.”
“Oh she’s cooked.”
Serena’s face flushed blotchy red.
“That’s not…It’s not…You can’t expect me to…” she stammered.
Elian snorted. “Unbelievable.”
Kael ran a hand over his face. “Serena, what the hell.”
But I just stood there.
Frozen.
Because even though I KNEW they weren’t completely mine yet, something sharp still stabbed under my ribs.
I hated that it hurt.
My wolf whimpered.
Serena caught the reaction and her eyes gleamed like she’d won something.
“See?” she said, straightening. “They were with me. BOTH of them. And your Luna is pretending she’s the only one who matters.”
Elian stepped forward, voice cold. “First of all, Serena, we were never ‘with’ you. You threw yourself at us at two different gatherings and left before either of us even remembered your name.”
A few wolves choked on their own laughter.
Kael added, “And second, if you don’t know which one’s the father? That’s your problem, not ours.”
The crowd gasped.
Serena trembled, humiliated and furious. “You can’t talk to me like that!”
Elian turned to me, eyes softening just a fraction. “Amara…”
“Don’t,” I said sharply, because that little flicker of concern made the ache worse.
Serena pounced on the moment.
“Oh my moon, are you jealous Luna?” she gasped, delighted.
I felt my wolf rise.
But I didn’t answer her.
Instead, I turned to the elders, keeping my voice tight and steady.
“Test her. Now.”
Serena paled. “Wait…no, I don’t want…”
Too late. Two warriors grabbed her arms from behind.
“No! Let me go! I don’t have to prove anything to her…”
“You do,” Elder Mira said sternly. “And to this entire pack.”
Serena’s scream echoed as they dragged her toward the healer tents.
I exhaled shakily.
Elian touched my elbow again. “Hey. You okay?”
Kael stepped closer, eyes searching mine. “It doesn’t mean anything, Amara. Before the bond…before you, we weren’t…”
“Stop,” I whispered. “Both of you, Just stop.”
I turned to the crowd and forced my voice not to shake.
“The mating ceremony is postponed,” I announced. “Until further notice.”
Gasps. Whispers. Outrage.
I didn’t care.
I ran toward the edge of the woods shifting into my wolf form.
But even then… the thought chased me.
It dawned on me then that my twin alpha mates could possibly have…
Loved her.
Or at least wanted to.
- Writer
